British Columbia By: Jeremy Quan
Promotion of Physical Literacy in British Columbia
In October 2013, I had the opportunity to fulfill a grant obtained by the British Columbia Ultimate Society. This grant, supplied by Viasport, aimed to promote physical literacy throughout the province of British Columbia. Naturally, the BCUS used Ultimate as the teaching tool to achieve this, calling the program the Youth Ultimate Development Program. The six months that followed was an amazing experience of program development, communication and travel.
The BCUS board wanted to reach out to 100 different groups and communities through the means of Ultimate starter packs and workshops. The Ultimate starter packs included a manual, a DVD, field cones, a deck of Ulticards and a stack of discs – everything a group of eager individuals needs to start playing the sport. The equipment was easy to distribute and the manual/DVD included various resources, opinions and teachings from the local and larger community. The packs and workshops worked hand-in-hand, as I was able to interact with group and community leaders face-to-face to thoroughly go through the manual and answer any questions they had. Initially, it appeared there was little interest in the program.
Eventually, I realized that the best way to get into communities was through the local Ultimate leagues, many of whom had a solid foundation already established with schools and locals. As a result, I was able to do workshops with the leagues in Surrey, Maple Ridge and Nanaimo and starter packs were sent to Kelowna, Vernon, Squamish, Whistler, Langley and other small cities and communities. As well, we connected with the Aboriginal Sport, Recreation and Physical Activity Partners Council and sent out 18 Starter Packs to all corners of the
province. Through this relationship, we were able to reach out to women and aboriginals – a prime objective in the project.
A highlight of the project was definitely my trip to Northern BC. After a two-hour flight, I was in the “Northern Capital” of BC, Prince George. Never have I seen so much snow and moose warning signs in my life. The first workshop I was supposed to host ended up being cancelled at the last minute – luckily though, another group was keen on taking their place; 40 high school volleyball girls. They were, surprisingly, very engaged while watching the DVD, and eagerly learned how to throw the disc. My second workshop was even more interesting, as it took place in the Prince George Youth Custody Centre. As soon as I entered, I was given a personal alarm where I was told to “press the button in an emergency; nothing will happen, but press it if anything does.” Thankfully, the workshop went seamlessly (and safely), and the participants learned some new skills in a sport they had never encountered before.
The Youth Ultimate Development program managed to reach out to untapped groups and promote physical literacy through the sport of Ultimate. Through more outreach and programs, the BCUS hope to continue with similar projects in the future.
Ultimate in Prince George
Photo by: Leon Erickson
Ultimate Canada Magazine -
www.canadianultimate.com
13
Regional Update
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